Death Knight Box Set Books 1-5: A humorous power fantasy series

by Michael Chatfield

  then toss it over the wall. Then my friend can get the soap into the people’s hands and then they can use that and the masks that I make to try to stop the plague from spreading.”

  “You really mean to send it to the people in Skalafell?” the le- gionnaire asked.

  “Yes.” Tommie felt like an idiot underneath the gazes of these massive beast men.

  “All right.” The legionnaire retracted his gaze and looked to one of his men. “Stone Cut, you go and get some of the legionnaires to collect the charcoal and the animal fat together. Gnome, how do we make it into soap?”

  “Well, it won’t be real soap, but if you mix water, charcoal, and animal fat together, then it will at least make a soap-like substance,” Tommie said.

  “All right, Jorah, you get some boys to help to make the soap. Gnome, you teach him and he’ll look after it. Now, you said some- thing about masks?”

  “Yeah, like cloth to put over your face so that it is harder for people to get infected. I was also going to make a water system that allows one to filter the water—would need to have some cloth and then a lot of the charcoal that has been burned, then rocks and sand,” Tommie said.

  “Conway, go to the stores and see if we have any cloth we’re not using. Rinzen, get a party together—go and see if you can round up some people to get gravel and sand from the river. Anything else?”

  “Uh, no,” Tommie said.

  “Good.” The legionnaire looked to the others. “Move it, and get others to help. The next legion leaves in a day. They can sleep when they march.”

  The group with him moved off at a run.

  “I’m Centurion Raul. Tell me how to make these different sys- tems and I can teach my people,” Raul said.

  “Yes, but why?”

  “Why teach me?” Raul asked in a dangerous voice.

  “No, why are you helping me?” Tommie asked, not sure where he got the confidence to ask that question.

  “Those are my people in Skalafell. I might not be a citizen of the city, but I spent my free time there quite a bit and we swore in the legion to protect our people. I have orders that I can’t go into

  the city, to make sure that no one comes out. Instead of helping them, we’re keeping them caged up. I understand why—we’re in a state of war—but I still want to do something. If your friend is in- side, I hope that he can get these resources to the people who need it. I don’t care if he is making some money on the side, but if he takes too much and doesn’t get this out to the people, then I will get into that city and cut him down,” the centurion said.

  Tommie couldn’t help but laugh. The centurion looked at him, cocking his head to the side.

  “Don’t worry, Centurion. He’s the last person to charge anyone money. I don’t think he has a copper to his name and he wants to help out is all.”

  Centurion Raul took a measure of Tommie before he walked forward. “I hope he is as you say. Now, how do we make these con- traptions of yours?”

  ***

  “And he just jumped up the wall into the city?” Jaclu asked Tysien. “Yes, Camp Leader. I am looking for permission to follow him into the city. There is no knowing what he is doing in there.” Tysien saluted as a messenger ran into the camp leader’s room with a re-

  port.

  “Speak,” Jaclu said.

  “Centurion Raul has mobilized some of the legion to gather charcoal, unused cloth, animal fat, sand, and gravel to assist a gnome,” the messenger said.

  “For what purpose?”

  “He is looking to make materials that will aid the people inside Skalafell. The gnome is using the materials to make masks, soap, and water filtration items.”

  “Interesting. Do we have a report on the elf ?” She looked to one of her aides.

  They flipped open a notebook. “She headed into the trader camps that are opposite Skalafell with the gnome. They met up with some of the people from the caravan that they were with. She stayed with them and the gnome returned to raid the fires around the main camp. It looked like they were gathering food and creating food packages to send into the city. She is still in the trader camp currently and coordinating with them.”

  “Here are my suggestions.” Jaclu looked around the room. Her orders stopped her from being able to do anything to help the peo- ple in the city, even if she wanted to do everything in her power to help them.

  “I would want the stores to look at the food that we currently have and look at what we would need to have two months’ worth of food, at a ration and a half per person. Then the excess to be checked for how fresh it is. We don’t want food that would go bad in our storehouses. Also, Centurion Raul has the right idea. The le- gionnaires have been antsy as of recently. Make sure that they clean up the fires, and dig up some gravel and sand as exercise. At night, it has been chilly so we should get some fires going to keep everyone warm.” Her eyes fell on the people in the room before she pointed at two messengers. “You go to the stores—you go to the traders.” She looked back at the messenger who had come back. “You talk to Centurion Raul and pass on my thoughts; make sure that if he wants to carry out this punishment detail, he will have to command it. Tysien, I will okay your request to go into Skalafell. We need re- ports on what is happening in there in case there are any issues and to make sure that any donations that are sent in are given to the people who need it.”

  “I will not let you down.” Tysien’s heart that had been tight, un-

  able to help the people in Skalafell, released a little bit. She was still wary of Anthony, but he and his people had given her an excuse to go into the city. Just what are they trying to do? With our people

  looking after the supplies now, there will be no way for them to pass anything secretive to him. They might have been trying to use this as a way to smuggle items in and out of the city. I’ll make sure that they’re not trying to harm the people of Skalafell.

  “Everyone go and take a break—get some water. Tysien and I need to catch up on some private matters,” Jaclu said.

  The people cleared out of the room quickly and closed the door behind them. Jaclu’s aides stood guard.

  Jaclu pulled out a bag and put it on her desk. “These are con- coctions that we have in our stores. Take these and use them on the city lord—see if any of them work. If they do, then I can give you the concoctions. It won’t be enough to save them all but it’ll save a lot of them. If none of them do, then we can only keep the quar- antine. I have been authorized to use deadly force if people try to break out of the city.”

  Tysien took the bag from Jaclu, feeling the weight of the bag as she made sure to secure it to her hip tightly.

  “This Anthony might actually be doing some good. Don’t let your past experiences cloud your judgement. Who could know that the girl you saved would turn against you and unlock the gates to the camp?” Jaclu said.

  Tysien’s body burned in shame and anger, remembering the girl’s smile as she opened the doors, the familiar cavalry of the hu- mans storming into the castle, killing and destroying those around her. She had trusted the little girl, looked after her and felt like a mother to her. But her feelings had been wrong: she had brought in one of the humans’ own, who had used her.

  She saw Tysien as nothing more than a pawn, a piece to be played to destroy the beast kin. She had seen the hatred in the little girl’s eyes, her mad laughter as the cavalry charged in with their blades.

  “Burn and kill! Destroy them all! Take my hatred, beasts! Taste your own treatment!”

  Tysien still had so many questions for her. Why did she lead the attack against us? Just what was wrong with her to take so much joy in killing us all?

  She touched her chest, where she had been cut down. Some of the legionnaires made it out and took her with them. Now she stands as one of the Church of Light’s chief judicators—Saintess Letanya, the youngest saintess among the humans.

  “Yes, Camp Leader.” Tysien forced the words out. Jaclu only sighed. “You have
your orders.”

  Tysien saluted, with Jaclu returning the salute. Tysien opened the doors and headed out into the camp and toward Skalafell.

  ***

  Keze ran into her mother’s arms, still wearing her tattered dress and cloak as she cried in her embrace.

  Tissis couldn’t keep up her anger. Her husband was affected by the plague, withering away no matter what treatment they gave him. Seeing Keze, all of her anger reached its limit but her hug stopped her from releasing it.

  “I wanted to help Poppa but then when I was going to the heal- ers, there were these men with claws and they wanted me to heal them but I didn’t have the cure but they wouldn’t listen. Then this human, a bad human, came in and slaved them so I was scared and I ran away. He was wearing this armor and he beat them up!”

  Keze’s words were distorted but Tissis got enough of an idea. “Find me this human and the three who attacked my daughter

  this minute!” she yelled. Her voice carried through the room. Everyone could feel her bloodline’s power surging through her, as if she were bare seconds from putting on her own armor and search-

  ing the streets for these people herself as she gave vent to the help- lessness and anger within her chest.

  People rushed into action and all of the able-bodied guards were ordered out of their homes, leaving their loved ones behind as they scoured through the city, looking for the people who attacked the little miss.

  As they went through the streets, their anger at the four people who took them away from their homes changed as they learned about the emergence of the Black Rags.

  “What?”

  Tissis was in her husband’s office, looking at the guard captain. “They’re called the Black Rags. They’re going around the city. They use their Black Rags to cover their faces. We thought that they were bandits and looters at first, but they’re checking on the wells, seeing how full they are. Others are going house to house to see what the condition of people is. Some are making more masks to try to stop the spread of disease; others are drawing water up from the well and boiling it to purify the water and deliver it to different families. Those who are sick are being organized into different ar- eas. Large warehouses have been cleared out and turned into med-

  ical facilities to try to isolate the plague.” “Who ordered them to do this?”

  “There was a man, a knight, who supposedly told a bunch of them to do this, said that they were paying for their crimes by doing community service. Most of them have these purple chains around their wrists. Though more people are joining them. They answer to a wall that has this strange symbol on it. They go up and put their paper to the wall; there is a change on the wall and the information is added, possibly. Then they go to another part of the wall that says jobs. Either it creates a new job for them, or they’re sent to report to someone to help them out.”

  Tissis had an uneasy feeling as the guard captain pulled out a piece of paper.

  “This is a drawing of the image.”

  She took a look at it. “I have seen this before.” She frowned and pinched the bridge of her nose. She leaned back in her chair. Her brain was just so tired. She was so tired.

  She opened her eyes a few times to try to wet them.

  She stood and turned around, looking at the painting. It was of a great battle, some unknown enemy and a group of people running into battle. Above it, there was a saying:

  “May your judgement be heavy as it weighs the lives and souls of those under you.” She read out the saying as her eyes looked at the top of the painting. There was the same shield, with an all-see- ing eye in the middle of it.

  I’ve seen this painting a thousand times and glanced at that sym- bol. She looked down at the image in her hand. Does this mean something? It has to. No human has been in this room as long as my husband has ruled. So how would they know to do this? Is this one of the families playing for power? Even if they are to do so, there is no way that they can control the city.

  She was filled with more questions than answers.

  “Come with me.” She grabbed a scarf out of the drawer and she wrapped it around her face.

  The guard captain followed her as she marched through the halls toward her family’s private quarters.

  She went through the doors before signaling to the guard cap- tain. “You might want to put on a scarf,” she said.

  He pulled out some cloth from his belt and put it around his mouth and nose.

  They passed another set of doors. There were guards wearing her family’s crest; all of them wore masks as they stopped and bowed to her as she passed.

  She got to a door where there were servants wearing masks, get- ting fresh cloths, food, and water. She passed them and entered her and her husband’s room.

  They walked across the room. Her husband lay down in their bed, covered in sweat. A thick medicinal smell hung in the air as herbs were being burned to try to cover the smell and help him re- cover.

  She grimaced and moved her nose around at the smell as she moved closer to him.

  He was covered in sweat and panting. As a member of the wolf clan, it was hard for him to cool down.

  She sat next to him. As he felt the weight on the bed, he cracked open an eye. Her chest tightened, seeing how hard it was for him to open his eye. “Don’t overexert yourself.” She put her hand on his chest.

  He let out a wet cough and she quickly rolled him on his side. He went on for a few minutes before his breathing calmed down again.

  She rolled him back. His eyes, tired and lifeless, looked at her. “Do you know what this is?” She showed him the symbol.

  He looked at it and then coughed, but stopped himself from going into a fit. “Ancestor had it...judgement...be fair.” Talking be- came harder for him and she stopped him from speaking anymore.

  “Save your strength,” she said.

  He weakly tilted his head and closed his eyes.

  She pushed his hair back. She would do anything in her power to see him alive and well, to see the suffering stop.

  “Lady Tissis,” the guard captain said. She looked at him.

  “We can’t have you sick as well.” The captain’s voice was soft, knowing how hard it was for her to leave her husband like this.

  She merely nodded and grit her teeth. She wanted to nurse him back to health but she had to keep the city going and weather through this.

  She walked out of the room, taking some time to calm her emo- tions as she washed her hands thoroughly. As she did, she fought to control her mind. Seeing her husband like that cleared her mind more.

  “If these Black Rags are doing good, make sure to monitor and help them. Make our statement clear: we are willing to help the people of Skalafell; we do not wish for violence. It will allow us to get some control over them in case they start trying to pull some- thing,” she told the guard captain.

  “I will see to it,” the guard captain said.

  “As for the search for the people who attacked Keze, hold off for now. We need to deal with this crisis first before we break our forces apart.” Tissis’s anger had waned. They needed to survive first; then they could look at dealing with the issues.

  The guard captain nodded.

  “Go.” She sent him on his way. She moved back to the office, feeling weaker than before but more stubborn as she walked with quick strides.

  Night had fallen over the city, though she could see people with torches moving about in the darkness. The halls were lit up with magical devices and candles. She looked out of the office’s windows as a flutter of light took her attention. She saw a pair of golden wings flap in the night sky before they disappeared from sight.

  I’m starting to see things, I’m so tired. She laughed to herself and turned up the light in the room as she looked at the reports of food that had been compiled. “Just after winter when our stores are the lightest.” She lifted up the papers to see a black letter.

  It stuck out among the other reports and important lett
ers.

  She put down her report and turned the letter over in her hands. There was nothing to identify it. With a knife, she opened the letter.

  It was of black paper, as well, with silver lettering on it.

  “At this time, your husband is probably already at the point of dying. We have a cure, but are you worthy to receive it? If you tell anyone about this letter, you will never hear from us again. We con- tained the plague within this letter so you have already contracted it as well. Think wisely about your decision. Leave a light on in the northern tower and we will send further instructions about our co- operation. You don’t have much time to wait. If not for your hus- band, than maybe your daughter. I have heard that it is terrible to lose a child.”

  She tore the piece of paper apart and threw it across the desk, letting out a frustrated yell and breathing heavily. She grabbed the letter and threw it in the fire. She ran to wash her hands; she gar- gled water and spit it out, hoping that it was all a lie.

  She wiped her face but there was a conflicted expression on her face.

  “Lady Tissis, there is a Commander Tysien from the camp to see you. She’s been sent over to liaise,” a guard said through the door.

  “One second!” Tissis tried to compose herself as she looked in the mirror. She wanted to destroy the people who wrote that letter.

  What if they really have a cure?

  Her heart shook. She knew that her husband would never ac- cept it, but seeing him in so much pain, thinking about Keze catch- ing the plague...

  She grabbed her mask and put it over her mouth and nose.

  I’ll have to keep her away from me to make sure that she won’t catch it if I have it.